Thursday, June 11, 2009

I just finished Greymantle by John Morressy.

This is an early '80s era fantasy, similar to a lot of things I read when I was a kid. It's the second book in a trilogy, though it's a prequel to the first one, so maybe I should say it's the first book in the trilogy.

In any case, it's an OK read. Shorter than most modern fantasy books, which is a good thing, but with characters that are almost cardboard. The plot involves a baby with a destiny, saved by the good guys by swapping it with a dead one just before the bad guys try to kill it. He turns out to be the best fighter ever, as well as a darn nice guy, etc, etc, before returning to discover the bad guys and kill them all.

There are some twists and turns, as it turns out the bad guy is actually being manipulated by a group of other bad guys. And some of the plot is handled oddly. Characters are introduced, built up and then killed off screen with very little fanfare. The final confrontation between the hero and the guy who tried to kill him as a baby is very quick, and then things move on to the behind the scenes bad guys.

Maybe it would make more sense if I'd read the other first book in the trilogy, but I doubt I ever will.

Amazon Link: Greymantle

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